Driving distracted, whether in real life or in a video game, can have serious consequences.

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By Colleen Seidel/The Record Herald

Waynesboro Record Herald - Waynesboro, PA

By Colleen Seidel/The Record Herald

Posted Mar. 11, 2013 at 11:30 AM
Updated Mar 11, 2013 at 12:56 PM

By Colleen Seidel/The Record Herald

Posted Mar. 11, 2013 at 11:30 AM
Updated Mar 11, 2013 at 12:56 PM

I crashed the car before they even gave me anything to drink.

Attending the 30th annual Waynesboro Hospital Health Fair Saturday morning at Waynesboro Area High School, I was excited to try out the texting/DUI simulator at the fair, sponsored by the PA DUI Association.

As someone who's always chiding my older sister for texting and driving, I was eager to experience first-hand what the consequences would be for such a bad but ubiquitous 21st century habit.

I took my place in the driver's seat of the life-sized simulator and strapped in, ready to play. But, as it turns out, my skills at navigating another modern activity — video games — aren't as good as my actual driving skills.

In the first scenario, the texting one, I ran off course during the simulation and wound up being hit, T-boned really, by a blue pickup truck in the middle of an intersection.

In the second scenario, in which I was to drive "impaired" by alcohol, I crashed the car on the highway embankment before Mike, the simulator technician, had even factored in any alcohol.

"Are you sure you have a driver's license in real life?" Mike joked.

I do.

Even though I didn't exactly follow the simulation as planned, the jolt of getting hit by another car, both visually and physically (because the simulator shakes), was nonetheless intense.

The car seemingly comes out of nowhere, maybe because you're paying attention to what's happening on the little console screen, maybe because you're busy trying to navigate the confusing directions on screen while Mike cajoles you from the back.

But it comes out of nowhere, and it's arresting when the car hits. You're shocked, certainly; luckily, you're uninjured, but only because it's a simulation. In real life, I would be in a hospital bed right now instead of at my computer typing this.

Before I headed to the fair, my editor showed me a black and white photo of herself sitting in a crash simulator used in 1985. It was meant to give people the experience of what it's like to be in a crash with and without wearing a seat belt, back when seat belt safety was a big issue.

I've never not worn my seat belt while in a car, perhaps because I grew up in that era when seat belt-wearing campaigns were in full swing. Also, my dad never started the car unless we were fully "clicked in."

Nowadays, kids are growing up with all kinds of digital devices in cars, from GPS systems to cell phones and even DVD screens. Driving now is a veritable entertainment zone, instead of simply being a means of getting from point A to point B.

Page 2 of 2 - So I hope that current driver safety campaigns, like the texting and DUI simulator at Saturday's health fair, get the very serious message through to people that everyday distractions in the car can literally mean life or death for drivers and passengers.

I know it did for me, even if I'm not a virtual-reality gaming champion.